Dynamic association in IEEE 802.11 based wireless mesh networks

In this paper, we propose a dynamic association mechanism that takes load balancing, link quality and association oscillation avoidance into consideration. The metric introduced in this association mechanism measures the real-time traffic load through channel based load detection and suits both coordinated and uncoordinated wireless mesh networks. Because of the random characteristics of wireless links and the variability of network conditions, dynamic re-association should be involved. To avoid association oscillation during re-associations, we introduce oscillation avoidance schemes, which consist of periodic client station (STA) scan and re-association threshold. We further evaluate our dynamic association mechanism through simulations in the context of IEEE 802.11 based wireless mesh networks.